Bedmar y Garcíez
Bedmar y Garcíez is located at the foot of Sierra Mágina, with a landscape full of rough land, used the lands for growing of cereal and olives. It belongs to the , that is part of the Subbética and in which you can see beautiful landscapes. As for the vegetation, we can find holm oaks, gall-oak groves, the Aleppo Pine and the European Black Pine. We can mention its rich and varied fauna.
This village is made up by the localities of Bedmar and Garcíez, being the first one the most important. Bedmar has a splendid church and Garcíez an interesting Palace, both of them belongs to the Renaissance Period.
Its origins goes back to the Iberian Age, (cerrillo de los Ayozos, Los Cornetales), that later will serve to the Romans and Visigoths as site. But the Arabs are the ones who will give weight to Bedmar, when they settled down next to the Serrezuela and built the Villa Vieja, and later, in IX century, they build the Castillo Nuevo.
In 1431 was carried out the definitive Spanish conquest, after frequents changes of hands, as result of the strategic location in the Nasrid frontier. In XIX century disappear the Encomienda de la Orden de Santiago and in 1975 merge the towns of Bedmar y Garcíez.
Monuments
Palacio de Garcíez.
Church of Ntra. Sra. de la Asunción, Renaissance.
Torreón y Santuario de la Virgen de Cuadros.
Castillo roquero árabe.
Archaeological Remains.
Arab Towers.
Cueva del castillo.
Town Planning
Modernist Houses.
Gastronomy
The gastronomy of Bedmar is base don the vegetable garden products besides the ones that come from the pig slaughter. Asparagus, red peppers, artichokes and broad beans are the ingredients used in the traditional cookery.
We can emphasize some traditional dishes such as the fried flour breadcrumbs, the andrajos, with rabbit and clams, the onion black pudding, the different variety of gazpacho and for the dessert the mansicos, almendrados, alfajores (sweet biscuits with filling) and the oil rings, all cooked with the best olive oil. In certain dates of the year are typical the rings of San Blas, the filling in Carnival or the Easter Pies the Easter Sunday.
Bedmar y Garcíez is part of the area of production that stands out because of its quality: the Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
This Olive Oil is marketed with the label of quality: La Denominación de Origen “Sierra Mágina”.
How to get there
You have to exit Jaén and go towards Mancha Real - Baeza - Úbeda (A316). Alleyway Puente Nuevo and turn right to the Motorway A-320. Alleyway Mancha Real and Jimena. Then you have to follow the indications until you get Bedmar.
Distances
To Jaén 44 km
To Pegalajar 33 km
To La Cerradura 43 km
To Mancha Real 29 km
To Albanchez de Úbeda 13 km
To Jódar 10 km
